Chapter 11 Taliana
CHAPTER ELEVEN
TALIANA
I… didn’t think this through.
Now I’m soaking wet in the middle of the Alpha’s room with no towel, no clothes, and nowhere to go. But if he thinks I’m going to trade my firstborn for gold…
I snarl, snatching at the necklace around my neck.
Then the Prince of Gold Sector’s words from earlier replay through my thoughts.
“Gold is a coveted metal in Gold Sector. I suggest you not only wear that necklace to your next audience with the court but also bring any other gifts you’re given. The more items you can present, the better you’ll be received. Do you understand?”
“Oh, Gods,” I breathe. “I’m the miller’s daughter…”
“You’re nothing like her,” Oros says as he saunters into the room with a large white towel. “Come here, printesa mea. You’re dripping all over my wood floors.”
I narrow my gaze at him. “I don’t want anything from you. No more gold. No… no towels. Nothing. You are not taking my firstborn.”
“I have no desire to take your firstborn,” he murmurs, his steps bringing him closer to me and causing me to backpedal. I yelp as my rump hits his bed. He keeps coming toward me, making me wince against the mattress.
Only to be engulfed in the softest, fluffiest towel I’ve ever felt in my life.
He wraps it around me like it’s a blanket, his strong arms yanking me away from his bed as he mutters, “I’m all for having a wet Omega in my bed, but not quite like this.”
I shiver in his arms, his strength doing things to me. Things I want to reject. Things I want to run from.
Because I won’t be the miller’s daughter. I won’t give up my child. I won’t be my mother, I think, shuddering violently.
“Shh,” he hushes.
But I won’t be shushed.
“You can’t have my child,” I tell him.
My wolf seethes inside, furious right along with me. She might not understand our words or what we were discussing in the shower, but she understands me. And she’s livid.
I can feel her clawing at my instincts, demanding I let her free.
It suddenly feels like my only option.
“Taliana,” Oros says, a hint of dominance in his tone.
But I’m done listening to him. I… I can’t be the miller’s daughter. I won’t be my mother. I won’t give up my child.
Not for anything.
Not for being accepted.
Not for being mated.
Not for being wanted. Desired. Claimed.
No. I… I can’t. I won’t.
“Taliana.” His Alpha growl wraps around me, grounding me in the present and halting my shift before it can ignite. I cry out in agony at having his dominance pressing down on me, my knees bending in response.
He catches me and holds me, his purr instantly roaring to life as he presses his lips to my ear.
But I can’t hear what he’s saying.
My heart is beating too fast, my breathing a panting mess, my insides… twisting.
There’s a low keening sound—a mewl?—that makes thought impossible. I… I just… I can’t… I’m…
I’m blind.
Everything is dark.
No light.
No, too bright.
I wince, my hand covering my eyes as the world shifts all around me.
Blackness overtakes me once more, followed by a burning deep inside. Somewhere, someone is growling. Snapping. Arguing.
I… I don’t know what to do. How to see. Where to go. Who I am. All I feel is fire. Intensity. Heat.
Gods…
It hurts. Oh, it’s scorching me from the inside out. I think I’m crying. Screaming, maybe. Everything is wet. Scalding. Fiery.
But beneath it all, I sense a vibration that hypnotizes my wolf. She’s been pacing inside me, mewling, screaming for a way out, but that hypnotic reverberation lulls her under a calming spell. I trace that rumble, needing more. It’s so soothing. So tranquil. So right.
I nuzzle into it, my cheeks soaked with tears.
I’m still naked.
But hot. So, so hot.
“I’ve got you, Taliana,” a familiar voice says, each word underscored with that intense purr. “Just try to relax for me, printesa mea. Can you do that, sweet girl? Take deep breaths. That’s it. Inhale. Exhale. Inhale. Exhale.”
I must be following his commands because I can feel the pressure alleviating in my chest.
“Good girl,” he praises. “Keep breathing with me, little diamond. Yes, like that, baby. Exactly like that.”
Dizziness overwhelms me, his words doing something to me deep within.
Maybe it’s his nearness. His tone. His scent. I don’t know, but all I want to do is nuzzle into him.
Except… except I shouldn’t trust him. Why, though? I wonder. Why can’t I trust him?
My head spins as I try to recall the reason, my mind foggy from whatever just happened.
Why am I so tired?
“I’m sorry I stopped your shift,” he whispers against my ear. “Flames, that might have been the hardest thing I’ve ever had to do. But Doctor Taylor told you not to shift for a reason. You can’t go into heat. Not until you have a plan in place.”
I blink. He used his Alpha dominance to quell my wolf.
I can feel it now, my animal cowering inside me, terrified of the Alpha currently wrapped around me.
Or perhaps just scared because of what happened.
I try to pull away from him, needing to clear my mind, to recall exactly what occurred.
“I don’t want your firstborn, Taliana,” he says, confusing me even more.
What?
“It’s a fairy tale. You asked about my nickname—Rumpel—and it’s just because of my affinity for gold.”
I finally open my eyes enough to look at him. Apparently, I’m in his lap. On the bed.
And we’re both naked.
“It’s an old joke my brother came up with when we were young,” he goes on, his golden gaze grabbing and holding my focus. “He usually calls me Rumpelstiltskin when he wants to goad me. Just like I call him Silverstiltskin in return.”
I keep staring at him, lost as to what any of this means.
“His affinity is for white gold,” he goes on. “Referring to him as Silverstiltskin pisses him off. But I’m not exactly a fan of being compared to a conniving imp either.”
“I don’t…” I cough, my throat drier than I realized.
Oros reaches over for a bottle of water and brings it to my lips. I have no idea how that appeared nearby or why he had it ready, but I’m thankful anyway.
“I gave you that necklace as a sign of affection,” he tells me. “Not because I expect something in return. And certainly not your firstborn. I would never take a child away from an Omega. That’s cruel.”
Okay, some of the earlier conversation is coming back to me now.
The shower.
His story.
The links my mind made to me being the miller’s daughter.
I set the now-empty bottle of water aside and touch the coin hanging from my neck. “The Gold Sector Prince said gold is coveted,” I whisper, recalling how my mind made the jumps earlier. “He told me it’ll impress the Royal Court…” I try to yank on the chain again. “I don’t want to impress them. I…”
“Taliana,” he says, his hand covering mine. “This necklace isn’t about impressing them. It’s about me marking you.”
I blink at that. “What?”
He blows out a breath, reminding me that I’m practically curled up in his lap because his chest is right next to my arm. “There’s something about your scent that makes my dragon crazy. I made the necklace as a sign of favor, my favor, because I… I want you to wear my mark.”
Frowning, I run my thumb over the coin and note the engraving. I can’t tell what it is, exactly, but it’s indented with some sort of symbol. “Oh.”
“Oh,” he echoes, huffing a laugh. “You have no idea how profound this is.”
“Do guardians typically want their Omegas to wear their marks?” I ask slowly, trying to guess at what he means.
“No, little diamond. No, they do not. In fact, only Alphas courting an Omega mate do such a thing.”
“Oh,” I say again. Or, well, my lips form the shape. But it comes out barely audible.
Because Oros just insinuated that he made me this necklace… as a sign of courtship.
He wants me.
An Alpha… wants me.
And he knows about my wolf.
Which makes this even more impactful. Because a Drakonian Alpha wants to court me.
“I…” My brow furrows, my mind catching up on something else he said. “Because of my scent?” He said my scent was driving his dragon crazy.
“Yes,” he answers without hesitation. “You smell like a field of wildflowers, one my dragon very much wants to roll in.”
I blink at him. “You smell like a bonfire to me.”
His nose wrinkles. “Is that good or bad?”
“Good,” I tell him. “Very good.” My cheeks heat at the admission, then burn when he smiles.
“Your father told me you’re genetically predisposed to attract a mate by your scent,” he informs me, causing my eyes to widen. “Or, well, it sounds like you may have inherited that trait from your mother, anyway.”
My jaw tightens. “I’m nothing like my mother.” The words come out angry. And they also remind me of how we ended up in this bed together. “My mother would have traded me for gold. She would have given me up for much less. I am not my mother.”
He gazes at me for a long moment, saying nothing. Then he nods. “I believe you.”
Three words.
So simple.
Yet they… they release tension through my entire body.
I’m not even sure why it matters or why I needed to hear him say that. But I’m thankful for it anyway. Because it’s… freeing.
“Thank you,” I whisper. “Thank you for believing me.”
He cants his head, his golden eyes glittering. “So what are we going to do, little diamond? Explore this connection between us? Or ignore it?”
My brow furrows. “Why would we ignore it? I… I came here for a mate.”
“Because you actually want one? Or because you feel like you have no other option?”
“Um, I don’t really have an option…” I reply, trailing off. Because what else is there to say?
“You do,” he counters. “You don’t have to accept a mate to stay here, Taliana.”
“I’m pretty sure the Prince of Gold Sector would disagree with you,” I inform him.
He laughs and shakes his head. “I’m actually quite certain that he would agree with everything I say, Taliana.”
I arch a brow. “Yeah? That seems pretty cocky of you.”
“Cocky?” he repeats. “Is that so?”
“Very.” Although, I don’t really mind. His confidence is refreshing. It makes him easy to trust. Easy to talk to. Easy to just… be around.
He chuckles again. “Well, I’m certain you have options, Taliana. If you don’t want a mate, don’t take one. But if you’re open to exploring this chemistry between us, then I am, too.”
I study him, noting the seriousness in his gaze. “Is it normal for a guardian to court an Omega?”
“It’s not unheard of, but I wouldn’t call it normal, either.”
“Have you ever…?” I trail off, my attention returning to my necklace as I lift the coin. “Have you ever marked one of your charges before?”
“You’re the only Omega I’ve ever volunteered to be a guardian for,” he says, reaching for the token to stroke it with his fingertip. “You’re also the first Omega I’ve ever given such a gift to.”
I look at him again. “Really?”
“You don’t believe me?”
“No, I’m just surprised,” I admit.
He smiles, but it lacks the amusement of earlier. It’s a different kind of smile. One that almost seems shy. “Trust me, none of this was intentional. But we’re here now. You’re in my bed. Naked. Wearing my gold. And all I want to do… is cover you in my scent.”
“Because we’re compatible,” I say, repeating the term he used earlier.
“Yes.”
“And you’re offering to explore what that means,” I reiterate.
“I am.”
“Have you ever… explored with another Omega?”
“If you’re asking if I’ve knotted Omegas before, then yes, I have. But never with the intention of mating one. Only with the purpose of satisfying an Omega through her heat.”
“But with me…?” I prompt him, wanting to make sure I understand the difference.
“With you, I want to explore everything,” he says, his gaze falling to my lips.
“I want to taste you. Knot you. Nest with you. Adorn you with gold. Learn everything about you. Fly with you.” His eyes meet mine once more.
“No one has ever appealed to me in this way, Omega. I want to see what this is, what we might be together.”
I shiver, his honesty refreshing and also terrifying.
Because he’s offering more than I’ve ever dreamed possible.
A future.
A potential pairing.
A Drakonian Alpha mate.
I would be a fool to say no to exploring more with him.
So I respond with the only words that make sense. “Okay. I accept your courtship, Alpha Oros.”